The Bush administration has stuck to its hard line against Hamas and the terror group's insistence on opposing Israel's existence and support for terrorism. In a rather unusual move, the US requested and received a refund on the American aid held in escrow for the Palestinian Authority:

The Palestinian Authority has agreed to return $50m (£28.7m) of American aid following a request from Washington.

The US State Department said that it did not want the money going to a Hamas-led government that refused to recognise Israel.

The US has already said that it is reviewing all aid to the Palestinians in light of Hamas' election victory.

As proof that it is serious, it has asked for $50m of aid to the Palestinian Authority to be returned.

A small portion of the money had already gone towards economic activity in the territories, but the Palestinian Authority agreed to send back what remained in the bank. This comes on top of the expected Israeli cessation of tax transfers, putting the incoming Hamas government in a serious financial bind in its opening days.

Bush intended to send a message with this request, although whether he expected to get the money back is anyone's guess. However, the State Department announced today that it would still direct aid to ordinary Palestinians, but the US has now demonstrated that they do not wish to fund the government those people elected. I'm not sure that this strategy will be viewed as coherent. It might make the Left in the US happy that we want to help out the downtrodden as opposed to the terrorists, but if the US views the Palestinian elections as valid -- and they have said that all along -- then why do they want to reward the people who elected annihilationists to govern them?

The world insists on treating the Palestinians as children with no responsibility for their actions or choices. They have supported and demanded violence on their behalf for decades. They have never formed any significant movement for peaceful coexistence with Israel. In a free and fair election, they chose a radical Islamist terror organization as their preferred government. What more can they do to underscore their preference for armed conflict over settlement -- refuse to refund our money without a receipt?

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» The United States Requests a Refund from FreePA.org
The United States government has, appropriately, requested that the Palestinian Authority refund $50 million in aid given to it by the U.S. The Palestinian Authority has agreed to return $50m (£28.7m) of American aid following a request from Washington. [Read More]

Tracked on February 18, 2006 9:27 AM

» The United States Requests a Refund from FreePA.org
The United States government has, appropriately, requested that the Palestinian Authority refund $50 million in aid given to it by the U.S. The Palestinian Authority has agreed to return $50m (£28.7m) of American aid following a request from Washington. [Read More]

Tracked on February 18, 2006 9:28 AM